Navy says it is staying out of SouthField dispute

WEYMOUTH – The Navy is staying out of a dispute over the future of its former air base in South Weymouth, now known as SouthField.

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations and Environment Roger Natsuhara said in a letter to SouthField’s quasi-governmental overseer, South Shore Tri-Town Development Corp., that the Navy will not wade into a disagreement between Tri-Town and the project’s master developer, Starwood Land Ventures.

Tri-Town last week asked the Navy to oppose Starwood’s push for sweeping changes to the stalled project, including slashing Tri-Town’s authority and shifting it to Weymouth, Rockland and Abington, the towns in which the former base is situated.

But Natsuhara said the Navy has no authority to step in.

“Navy has no contractual relationship with your master developer and thus it would not be appropriate for us to intervene in matters between you and the master developer concerning your Development Agreement,” Natsuhara wrote in the letter.

Natsuhara said no matter what happens the Navy will continue with its ongoing efforts to clean up contamination on the site, as outlined in agreements with Tri-Town.

The Navy closed the base in 1997.

Starwood wants state lawmakers to approve legislation that would rewrite oversight of the project by the end of the formal legislative session on July 31. The company has said it could walk away from the project if that doesn’t happen.

Tri-Town would continue to exist as the local redevelopment authority for the project but with a limited role. Responsibility for providing public services – currently Tri-Town’s responsibility – would shift to the three towns and each would be able to collect property taxes on its section.

Weymouth’s mayor is still in negotiations with Starwood. Rockland and Abington officials have been skeptical of the developer’s plan.

Tri-Town CEO Kevin Donovan said the letter implies support for Tri-Town’s continued existence and suggests the Navy might not be willing to update its plans for environmental cleanup if Starwood and one or more towns decide to change future uses for parcels still being cleaned.

“The Navy’s response is that it’s more of a local issue, but they understand we’ve got certain agreements in place,” he said.

A spokesman for Starwood said the letter means just the opposite.

“The Navy’s response reaffirms what we’ve said all along – they’ve been aware of the changes in Starwood’s proposed legislation and have no objection to them,” Michael Sherry, of the public relations firm O’Neill & Associates, said. “This is nothing less than a complete rejection of Tri-town’s request.”

Plans for SouthField include about 2,800 homes and apartments and between 900,000 and 2 million square feet of commercial space. The first homes started going up in 2011, but the commercial development – and the jobs it was supposed to bring – have barely begun to materialize.

Tri-Town and Starwood have blamed each other for the project’s near stagnation.

Christian Schiavone may be reached at cschiavone@ledger.com or follow him on Twitter @CSchiavo_Ledger.